where should i start?

[stanleyjohn]

Getting ready for FTA

Went to radio shack today to get some odds and ends for grounding FTA sat system and oh boy how much they are out of touch.Bought what was needed after some explanation on what i needed and with 3 ft tripod set up i will install motorized disk set up next week then hookup the receiver when it comes in!hope to start scaning the skies next week.

 

[Blindowl1234]

The Shack is clueless especially when it comes to FTA....they probably said Huh?
Welcome to Sat Guys and get ready to watch lots of neat stuff. Blind

 

[Mr Tony]

I agree blind

A while back Rat Shack had 50 foot rolls of cable for dirt cheap. They were closing them out. (came out with new version)

I bought 5 rolls and the guy was like "wiring up something" and I said "yep my C-Band setup" and he looked so confused

 

[mike74820]

when i tell people i got the old 6 foot dish up and running they always have that caught in the lite look on there face. then what funny when i tell them what i pay , their eyes get even wider.. here raising your glass that cband is here for quite a bit longer CHEERS!!!!!!

 

[Dishman Dan]

Went to radio shack today to get some odds and ends for grounding FTA sat system and oh boy how much they are out of touch. ...

Yeah I know what you mean!

I used to shop at Radio Shack quite often about 15 years ago. I can easily say that they changed alot and the kids there now know texting, MP3s and ATVs and that is about it! I like going to electronic stores and "test" the sales people on their knowledge to see what they know and alot of times I really confuse them. Well the Shack seems to know phones and I do not have much interest in stopping there much anymore and also I am the one confused on those fancy phones they sell. Man it was a real treat when I went to buy a battery and holder to replace my battery in my 922!

 

[stanleyjohn]

Tripod is up on the garage roof with the mast secured and leveled.Did the grounding with 10 gauge wire secured to a long ground rod at the base of the garage and grounded the tripod and grounding block.Have a 5 ft piece of RG9 secured to the ground block and other side of cable secured up the mast to where the motor connection should be.Tomorrow the 36" dish,motor and cable get to the house and hopefully by mid week i will have it all installed on the mast.When the receiver comes in ill just need to hook it up and make any adjustments to the dish and motor for proper operation.Sounds easy!Hopefully it works out that way LOL.I will take some pics when set up is complete.

 

[stanleyjohn]

how much is too much??

I just installed my new 36" motorized dish on a 3 ft tripod on the roof (will take pics soon) and i have a question.how much movement on the dish when the wind is blowing before you see signal breaking up when watching a broadcast? Im just hoping mast needs some tightning but when the wind was blowing pretty good i could see the dish move slightly sideways.

 

[guapoharry]

Need pics.

How big is the mast diameter that the motor mount is fastened to?

Half a degree of rotation in the mast can make a difference, IMO.

 

[stanleyjohn]

Need pics.

How big is the mast diameter that the motor mount is fastened to?

Half a degree of rotation in the mast can make a difference, IMO.

was getting dark when i was finishing up,ill take some late tommorrow afternoon.Mast is a galvinized steel pipe 48" long and 1-5/8 diameter.Im thinking mast may be too long for the 3 ft tripod causing some flexing of the mast with the tripod!I can cut it shorter or lower mast to the roof level instead of stopping at second tripod securing ring on the tripod.My set up is just about the same as this link except mast is much longer. http://www.sadoun.com/Sat/Products/Fortec-Star/Dishes/Tripod_dish.JPG

 

[McGuyver]

was getting dark when i was finishing up,ill take some late tommorrow afternoon.Mast is a galvinized steel pipe 48" long and 1-5/8 diameter.Im thinking mast may be too long for the 3 ft tripod causing some flexing of the mast with the tripod!I can cut it shorter or lower mast to the roof level instead of stopping at second tripod securing ring on the tripod.My set up is just about the same as this link except mast is much longer. http://www.sadoun.com/Sat/Products/Fortec-Star/Dishes/Tripod_dish.JPG

If the mast pipe is thinwall then maybe you can find a thickwall pipe instead, it will add rigidity. and lowering it will also be best, fasten the bottom of the pipe somehow to the base or roof. Also check for play in the motor, it should be solid.

 

[delta_charlie]

was getting dark when i was finishing up,ill take some late tommorrow afternoon.Mast is a galvinized steel pipe 48" long and 1-5/8 diameter.Im thinking mast may be too long for the 3 ft tripod causing some flexing of the mast with the tripod!I can cut it shorter or lower mast to the roof level instead of stopping at second tripod securing ring on the tripod.My set up is just about the same as this link except mast is much longer. http://www.sadoun.com/Sat/Products/Fortec-Star/Dishes/Tripod_dish.JPG

Hi, looking at the picture link it sure looks like the 4 foot mast you have could be dropped all the way to the roof and then the foot from an old DTV dish could be used (if you don't mind drilling more holes in the roof) to add stiffness if needed. Before I would do that however, I would want to try and lower the motor down as low as I could get it - just make sure there is clearance at all azimuth and elevation angles you will be using. Unless something is in the way there is no advantage to having the dish up higher and the lower you can mount it the stiffer it will be and it should help make it stronger for storm winds. Hope this helps, DC

 

[stanleyjohn]

Well here is another update!My satellite is now installed on the roof,got coax running into the home!now i just need my satellite receiver (sat hawk prv 800)which is out of stock right now!hoping sadoun gets his next shipment later this week.At first i had the mast and dish too high causing some play in the wind,made changes today (note extra support i added on bottom of mask).elevations all set and disk is pointing due true south!Guess i will find out how close i set it all up when i get the receiver.Here are a few pics.

 

[stanleyjohn]

Thanks for all the advice!I did some changes today!lowered the mast to the roof ,added some extra support on the bottom of the mast and lowered disk.It seems real solid now.check out pics here http://www.satelliteguys.us/showthread.php?p=2161070#post2161070 number 7.

 

[stanleyjohn]

Wind!

I guess this would depend on how your dish was mounted but what kind of winds will it take for your dish to become a flying saucer or some other damage done to the set up.Kinda would like to know when to start worrying during some big storm.Any stories from anyone on your dish during a wind storm?

 

[delta_charlie]

I guess this would depend on how your dish was mounted but what kind of winds will it take for your dish to become a flying saucer or some other damage done to the set up.Kinda would like to know when to start worrying during some big storm.Any stories from anyone on your dish during a wind storm?

Hi StanleyJohn, I once had a small Direct TV dish survive a direct hit by hurricane Charlie. We had 105 MPH winds near Orlando. The winds took down many of the oak trees and all of the power lines. Somehow the house took almost no damage so after the storm I fired up the generator and found the Direct TV dish was still on the satellite! It was quite an experience to be able to watch CNN, the weather channel and Fox news coverage of the storm from a blacked out neighbourhood. It took about 2 weeks for the neighbours to get their cable back. Regarding your FTA dish I would hope you should be able to withstand about 60 MPH winds provided the bolts you used to mount the tripod are through bolts with large fender washers on the inside of the attic. Looks like you have a nice steep roof with a large attic so it should not be too hard to reach the underside. My house has a very low pitch to the roof and a very small attic so all of the higher house mounted dishes are up on steel masts running to the ground and crossed braced to the side of the house. I get strong thunder storms during the summer with winds over 50 MPH and have not had any trouble with any of the FTA dishes. Hope this helps, DC

 

[stanleyjohn]

Thanks DC for that story and advice!.I used 1.5" heavy duty hex wood screws to secure the tripod.bolts and nut would of been a challenge for me due to no floor on the garage rafter and with the high roof a very hard time getting to the bolts inside.Hope this will do the job!Had some fairly gusty winds today (25-35 mph) and the mast didnt move.The one thing i did notice during wind gusts was a small vibration side to side on the dish.This is not the mast!its a slightly loose motor shaft going into the motor.The motor i have is a DG280 and have read in the booklet that an adjustment can be made for this.I dont want to play with the adjustment unless i need too.Since is my first attempt with a satellite system i dont really know what to expect during windy conditions.Now i just need to wait for my SatHawk receiver that i ordered from Sadoun to come in and get shipped to me so i can make any adjustments needed to start catching some satellites and watching RTV which i really enjoy.

 

[delta_charlie]

Hi StanleyJohn and the group, I had a few more thoughts on the tripod mounting. It might have been possible to hit the rafters with extra long lag bolts; however, for this to work the span between the legs of the tripod would have to match the spacing of the rafters. For example if the rafter spacing is 16 inches and the span between two of the legs on the tripod was 32 inches it might work. I would not worry about it now. Looks like you have a nice sturdy mount that should last for years. Maybe go up and check it from time to time and make sure the bolts are not working loose. I hope your receiver comes in soon so you can start enjoying FTA. Got to run, DC

 

[stanleyjohn]

Shouldnt be long now till i see some FTA action.Still waiting for my sathawk which i last heard was coming in mid next week! but i also have a matchbox usb that is shipped and should be delivered here by mid next.Im planning on using the sathawk on the 40" LCD screen and tinker around with the matchbox on my PC.

 

[jbmiller]

rat shack is a joke i know where everything is. i asked for a part they said they didn't have it. i said ya right i walk right up to where it was located. those sales people are clueless.
c ya
john

 

[drboyddrboyd]

StanleyJohn, I'm in about the same spot you are, only about two weeks behind.

I've got the motor, the lnb, and a bunch of cable connectors and stuff so far. I actually had one of the SatHawk receivers on order, but then I started reading about all the problems and a couple of the earliest buyers are selling them already, so I cancelled the order; I went with an AzBox Ultra instead. I figured I've got just exactly one chance to get this right with the spousal unit, and if it's a big PITA and she can't watch a show all the way through without something going on the fritz, I'll be toast.

I'm using the SG 9120 motor and the WSI 9036 dish; my problem is that I have a tile roof, so there's no easy way to just screw a tripod down to the roof. (Don takes another envious look at StanleyJohn's installation)

I'm thinking right now about bridging the eaves with a couple parallel pieces of Unistrut, and then U-bolting the pole to those. The trouble is that this would be off the side of the top of a two-story house, and I'm a little short on ladders and a lot short on huevos to get up there and fasten it on.

Sigh..